In summary of James 1:25 it says, “But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.”
Bottom line:
One who looks carefully into the revealed counsel of God, and not forgetting what it says but is faithful to do it, they will find delight and affirmation in the action.
What this means to me:
God has provided the guidance I need for living life. It is the law that actually will set me free (not bind me.) However, this guidance is not just something to hear and be better by. I need to apply it / do something with it / make it part of my natural inclinations. So I remind myself today through this passage that I must never stop looking at His perfect law that sets me free, because each time I look at it, it has more meaning or different things within it are revealed to me that I never saw before. God will bless me through my obedience in following it. Doing things on my own puts me in dangerous ground where outcomes can vary. God provides his protection when I do things his way. Just hearing alone doesn’t do it for me. I must listen, obey and take the next steps in faith. When I do right, the feelings of being right will follow especially as I see His blessings that come as a result of it.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Living A Relaxed Life In God’s Grace
In summary of Psalm 103:13-14 it says, "As a father is kind to his children, so the Lord is kind to those who honor him. He knows what we are made of; he remembers that we are dust."
Bottom Line:
Just as parents are kind to their children, the Lord is kind to all who have fear, worship and honor him. For he knows and remembers what we are made of, how weak we can be and that we are only dust.
What this means to me:
God understands me completely. He is fully aware of my humanity. Furthermore he knows all my faults, fears, failures and frustrations. I’m glad he is not expecting me to be a Superman. This passage reminds me that I didn’t wait to love my daughter until she was mature, I loved her at every state of her development. God loves me in the same manner, so I don’t need to listen to my unresolved guilt or unrealistic expectations. Today I remind myself of what I know about God from before in that there is nothing I can do that will make God love me more or less than he does right now. God’s love is always unconditional, it’s not based on what I do or don’t do. Even as a child is learning to walk, they get up, stumble and fall, yet we don’t scold them from stumbling or falling. God is the same, he knows that we will stumble and fall from time to time, however that doesn’t stop him from loving and providing the best for us. When I live in union with Christ Jesus, God no longer sees my sin and holds it against me; he sees Jesus at work in my life. When I gave Christ my life, Jesus wrapped me with his love. God looks at Jesus and sees that Jesus is perfect; and since I’m wrapped in Him, he doesn't see your sin. This is what I believe it means to live a relaxed life in God's grace. Today’s quiet time is very helpful considering that I did something incredibly stupid yesterday in a interaction with a business associate over a past incident (that evidently I had not forgiven him for.) This brought me into a direct experience with the content of last Sunday’s message “The Center of Gravity” which is also the topic for the next few weeks of the Life Group I am leading. This issue became the focus of my thoughts as the night progressed. I did take action in the late afternoon after this happened to speak with this person. I was not able to clear it up one-to-one, but I did leave a message asking for forgiveness for my behavior (I will still try to link up with this individual one-on-one.) Even though I was wrong in my behavior and I know that God forgives, especially when we seek to clear it up, the enemy tried to use this situation to bring me down with guilt and feeling of not being good enough. I laid it at God’s feet and reminded myself of the positive, I knew that I should not dwell on the negative aspect of this as that would further direct my behavior. So today, I will remind myself that God will not love me anymore or any less for what I do. He knows that Christ living in me will help bring about maturity. I know this example will live on in my mind as a reminder and has helped me realize that there is some things that I have not forgiven others for. I need to seek these things out so that I can forgive and let them go. I really don’t want them to affect my moving forward.
Bottom Line:
Just as parents are kind to their children, the Lord is kind to all who have fear, worship and honor him. For he knows and remembers what we are made of, how weak we can be and that we are only dust.
What this means to me:
God understands me completely. He is fully aware of my humanity. Furthermore he knows all my faults, fears, failures and frustrations. I’m glad he is not expecting me to be a Superman. This passage reminds me that I didn’t wait to love my daughter until she was mature, I loved her at every state of her development. God loves me in the same manner, so I don’t need to listen to my unresolved guilt or unrealistic expectations. Today I remind myself of what I know about God from before in that there is nothing I can do that will make God love me more or less than he does right now. God’s love is always unconditional, it’s not based on what I do or don’t do. Even as a child is learning to walk, they get up, stumble and fall, yet we don’t scold them from stumbling or falling. God is the same, he knows that we will stumble and fall from time to time, however that doesn’t stop him from loving and providing the best for us. When I live in union with Christ Jesus, God no longer sees my sin and holds it against me; he sees Jesus at work in my life. When I gave Christ my life, Jesus wrapped me with his love. God looks at Jesus and sees that Jesus is perfect; and since I’m wrapped in Him, he doesn't see your sin. This is what I believe it means to live a relaxed life in God's grace. Today’s quiet time is very helpful considering that I did something incredibly stupid yesterday in a interaction with a business associate over a past incident (that evidently I had not forgiven him for.) This brought me into a direct experience with the content of last Sunday’s message “The Center of Gravity” which is also the topic for the next few weeks of the Life Group I am leading. This issue became the focus of my thoughts as the night progressed. I did take action in the late afternoon after this happened to speak with this person. I was not able to clear it up one-to-one, but I did leave a message asking for forgiveness for my behavior (I will still try to link up with this individual one-on-one.) Even though I was wrong in my behavior and I know that God forgives, especially when we seek to clear it up, the enemy tried to use this situation to bring me down with guilt and feeling of not being good enough. I laid it at God’s feet and reminded myself of the positive, I knew that I should not dwell on the negative aspect of this as that would further direct my behavior. So today, I will remind myself that God will not love me anymore or any less for what I do. He knows that Christ living in me will help bring about maturity. I know this example will live on in my mind as a reminder and has helped me realize that there is some things that I have not forgiven others for. I need to seek these things out so that I can forgive and let them go. I really don’t want them to affect my moving forward.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Don’t Conform to the World, But Rather Be Transformed
In summary of Romans 12:2 it says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."
Bottom Line:
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but instead let God change the way you think and to transform you into a new person. Then you’ll learn what God’s will is for you, which is good, pleasing and perfect.
What this means to me:
I should not let the world around me squeeze me into its mould, instead I need to let God re-mould my mind from within, so that I will prove in practice that God’s plan for me is good and it will move me toward the person he wants me to be. This will require that I fix my attention on God. As I do he will change me from the inside out. Once I have have his way of thinking it will be much easier for me to recognize what he wants from me so that I can quickly respond to it. Without direct input from God, I will tend to follow the prevalent thinking and culture around me which will drag me down to its level of immaturity. So I need to let God bring the best out of me.
Bottom Line:
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but instead let God change the way you think and to transform you into a new person. Then you’ll learn what God’s will is for you, which is good, pleasing and perfect.
What this means to me:
I should not let the world around me squeeze me into its mould, instead I need to let God re-mould my mind from within, so that I will prove in practice that God’s plan for me is good and it will move me toward the person he wants me to be. This will require that I fix my attention on God. As I do he will change me from the inside out. Once I have have his way of thinking it will be much easier for me to recognize what he wants from me so that I can quickly respond to it. Without direct input from God, I will tend to follow the prevalent thinking and culture around me which will drag me down to its level of immaturity. So I need to let God bring the best out of me.
Where To Fix Your Thoughts
In summary of Philippians 4:8 it says, “One last piece of advice, fix your thoughts on the things which are true, honorable, just, beautiful, good and whatever is commendable, it there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”
Bottom line:
Direct and keep your thoughts and thinking on the things which are true, pure, honorable, just, beautiful and commendable.
What this means to me:
A last piece of advice Paul had for the Philippians was to have them change what filled their minds as it was a key to move forward. Like them I don’t need to be a victim of my circumstances or my initial thoughts that come to mind. The focus of my thoughts will direct the way I conduct myself (it becomes my mental center of gravity.) So God shows us what the right focus for our “mental center of gravity” should be. I am to direct and keep my thoughts and thinking on the things which are true, pure, honorable, just, beautiful and commendable. This will be the key to changing from where I am to where I’d like to be.
Bottom line:
Direct and keep your thoughts and thinking on the things which are true, pure, honorable, just, beautiful and commendable.
What this means to me:
A last piece of advice Paul had for the Philippians was to have them change what filled their minds as it was a key to move forward. Like them I don’t need to be a victim of my circumstances or my initial thoughts that come to mind. The focus of my thoughts will direct the way I conduct myself (it becomes my mental center of gravity.) So God shows us what the right focus for our “mental center of gravity” should be. I am to direct and keep my thoughts and thinking on the things which are true, pure, honorable, just, beautiful and commendable. This will be the key to changing from where I am to where I’d like to be.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Something That Everyone Can Count On
In summary of 1 Timothy 1:15 it says, "This statement is completely reliable and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am worst."
Bottom Line:
Here’s a statement you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and I am proof, being one of the worst.
What this means to me:
There is wonderful news in this statement, I join in with countless many before me who have found this to be completely true and reliable. I am living proof of this, being a sinner. Jesus came into the world to testify to the truth and to save us all from what should be our true judgement. He is my Messiah. I am an example who can come from an unmerited favor that comes from my king.
Bottom Line:
Here’s a statement you can take to heart and depend on: Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners and I am proof, being one of the worst.
What this means to me:
There is wonderful news in this statement, I join in with countless many before me who have found this to be completely true and reliable. I am living proof of this, being a sinner. Jesus came into the world to testify to the truth and to save us all from what should be our true judgement. He is my Messiah. I am an example who can come from an unmerited favor that comes from my king.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Facing Faults With Courage
In summary of 1 John 1:8 it says, “If we say that we have not sinned, we are only fooling ourselves and the truth isn’t in our” hearts.
Bottom Line:
If you think you haven’t sinned, you’re not thinking clear - you’re fooling yourself and the truth he has taught is not imbedded in your heart.
What this means to me:
Thinking that I don’t have any sin in my life (refusing to admit it), will only delude and lead myself astray. If I do so then the truth presented by his word is not something that my heart has adopted. In reality his word can be more like a mirror which reflects where I’m missing the mark. God is gracious and will forgive my sins if I come to him and confess/admit how I’ve been off-track and ask for his forgiveness. What I need to be careful of is masking a habit and not seeing it for what it is - sin. I need to be careful not to blame my circumstances on others or try to take the focus off of myself instead of admitting my own faults. I also need to be careful to not make excuses or pretend there is nothing wrong. As mentioned above, I need to face it head on and own it without any “but’s” at the end. This verse this morning is great reminder that my life is filled with things that miss the mark and that I’d only be fooling myself to think they are not there. There are some big areas I’m working on with him to change and the key for me is to not sweep it under the carpet but to bring them out and deal with them. I do realize this life is a training ground for eternity I’ll be a work in progress till the time he calls me to be with him.
Bottom Line:
If you think you haven’t sinned, you’re not thinking clear - you’re fooling yourself and the truth he has taught is not imbedded in your heart.
What this means to me:
Thinking that I don’t have any sin in my life (refusing to admit it), will only delude and lead myself astray. If I do so then the truth presented by his word is not something that my heart has adopted. In reality his word can be more like a mirror which reflects where I’m missing the mark. God is gracious and will forgive my sins if I come to him and confess/admit how I’ve been off-track and ask for his forgiveness. What I need to be careful of is masking a habit and not seeing it for what it is - sin. I need to be careful not to blame my circumstances on others or try to take the focus off of myself instead of admitting my own faults. I also need to be careful to not make excuses or pretend there is nothing wrong. As mentioned above, I need to face it head on and own it without any “but’s” at the end. This verse this morning is great reminder that my life is filled with things that miss the mark and that I’d only be fooling myself to think they are not there. There are some big areas I’m working on with him to change and the key for me is to not sweep it under the carpet but to bring them out and deal with them. I do realize this life is a training ground for eternity I’ll be a work in progress till the time he calls me to be with him.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Courage To Serve With The Best I Have
In summary of Ecclesiastes 11:4 it says,
“Those who wait for the perfect weather will never plant. So get on with it or you’ll never have a harvest.”
Bottom line:
If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.
What this means to me:
If I spend my time waiting for the right conditions before I act, I’ll end up never getting anything accomplished. If I worry about the weather or right environment/atmosphere, I won’t harvest a crop. I need to get on with what I know needs to be done. I believe that God expects me to do what I can with what I have and wherever I’m at when he asks it or I know that it needs to be done. A less than perfect service will always be better than any of my best intentions. I shouldn’t worry that I’m not good enough to do what God wants from me. As a servant I need to do the best with what I have. I need to remember that a servant doesn’t make excuses, procrastinate or wait for a better circumstance or time - they just do what needs to be done. While I should strive for excellence, I need to be obedient and act when he requests. It doesn’t have to be perfect for God to use and bless it. I’ve had a plan in mind for a while now getting some of the older guys from my congregation together for a more routine fellowship time. The idea is to start with just fellowship then eventually grow that get together time into things to help us build our character, leadership and faith. I will plan for a Saturday evening get together either the 20th or the 27th. I’ll bring it up as topic in my “Life Group” that I’ll be leading this coming Monday. In the words of Larry the Cable Guy, I need to “Get’r Done!”
“Those who wait for the perfect weather will never plant. So get on with it or you’ll never have a harvest.”
Bottom line:
If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.
What this means to me:
If I spend my time waiting for the right conditions before I act, I’ll end up never getting anything accomplished. If I worry about the weather or right environment/atmosphere, I won’t harvest a crop. I need to get on with what I know needs to be done. I believe that God expects me to do what I can with what I have and wherever I’m at when he asks it or I know that it needs to be done. A less than perfect service will always be better than any of my best intentions. I shouldn’t worry that I’m not good enough to do what God wants from me. As a servant I need to do the best with what I have. I need to remember that a servant doesn’t make excuses, procrastinate or wait for a better circumstance or time - they just do what needs to be done. While I should strive for excellence, I need to be obedient and act when he requests. It doesn’t have to be perfect for God to use and bless it. I’ve had a plan in mind for a while now getting some of the older guys from my congregation together for a more routine fellowship time. The idea is to start with just fellowship then eventually grow that get together time into things to help us build our character, leadership and faith. I will plan for a Saturday evening get together either the 20th or the 27th. I’ll bring it up as topic in my “Life Group” that I’ll be leading this coming Monday. In the words of Larry the Cable Guy, I need to “Get’r Done!”